A New British Underwear Company

We are a new small company specialising in undershirts. When I say small, it's me, Robert Owen Kay, founder and designer plus my partner Yvonne Roach, co-founder and chief organiser.

We design the undershirts ourselves. We then have the shirts produced by our factory partner in Leicester using fabric from a English mill.

Robert is the designer.

As described by Yvonne.

He researches materials (he has a passion for technologies) and tirelessly adjusts designs to get things 'just right'. Robert also looks after the online shop where he agonises over every detail from colour schemes to page layouts.

Yvonne is chief organiser

As described by Robert.

She loves nothing more than organising (just ask her friends), so she takes care of the rest of the business, from dealing with the factory to the logistics of postage and shipping. Yvonne is the queen of lists.

Why did we start Robert Owen Undershirts?

I needed to solve my own problem; how to avoid sweat marks on your shirts?

During a sabbatical, I researched materials and also worked with a seamstress to make the first prototypes, and the first style (now called Oxford Sweat protect) was born.

The undershirt worked well so I decided to have a few manufactured. Yvonne joined in with some investment and we set up the online store, Robert Owen Undershirts.

Why do we do it?

We love our product. We think it's genuinly useful and, we can tell from the reviews, our customers agree. It's such a pleasure to provide really good customer service, just as one might hope to receive. That's the beauty of running a niche independent brand. You can do it your way.

What does the future hold?

The business is growing at a steady pace; we don't want to grow too fast. We like that we can personally write to each of our customers. This summer we will expand the range with new fabrics and designs - responding to requests and suggestions from our customers. My aim? To make the UK's best undershirt. But that's not all. I'm even applying my design skills to men's underpants, though that is still early days.